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Indian state seeks new workers to break power strike

LUCKNOW: India's most populous state advertised on Sunday for new workers to break a week-long power strike which has plunged millions of people into darkness.

The Uttar Pradesh government took out full-page ads in all the northern state's prominent newspapers to fill vacancies created by the sacking of nearly 550 of the striking workers.

The state's power minister, Naresh Agarwal, said he wanted Uttar Pradesh State Electricity Board (UPSEB) workers, who number more than 87,000, to get a clear message.

"Enough is enough," Agarwal told Reuters.

"We were not giving out hollow threats when we said that we would go for fresh recruitments."

Some areas of the state capital, Lucknow, have been without electricity for over four days. Large parts of the state, home to around 160 million people, have been blacked out for longer.

The power strike has also affected water supplies.

Labour unions have vowed to carry on the strike, which was called to oppose a plan to commercialise the UPSEB by breaking it up into generation, transmission and distribution arms.

The strike, which began on January 15, has received support from electricity unions of some other states. These unions have called for a one-day token strike on Monday.

Two key labour leaders were detained under a national security law at the weekend, while thousands of ordinary workers have been detained under the Essential Services Maintenance Act.

Agarwal said nearly 20,000 of the 87,000 striking workers had reported back for duty. "So I am sure that the strike would fizzle out over the next few days," he said.

"To ensure early replacement of personnel, we have given January 28 as the last date for receipt of new applications. You see, we have to expedite the recruitment process so that the working of the organisation does not get adversely affected."

"Termination of more employees will continue, so vacancies are bound to increase over a period of time," Agarwal said.

The minister said satisfactory power supply was being maintained throughout the state, but witnesses said the situation had worsened in most places.

"There is no one to even listen to our plight," said Ramesh Yadav, a bicycle shop owner in the Lucknow Cantonment, where power has been down for five days.

"We somehow manage to survive with lanterns and candles at night, but how do we do without drinking water, for which one has to depend totally on electricity?" he said.

"We only know what it means to study under a candle light," moaned Monal Aron, a high-school student who is weeks away from a key round of examinations.-Reuters